Trimmed some fat, and it feels good...

[ralfyguy]

Took the plunge after 12 years and got rid of all the premiums and AEP. I also got rid of the $8 protection program a month. Bill went from $164 to $108. That's more like it.

I hardly find anything interesting there. Either I have seen it or it's crap. I could not justify this expense anymore...
Their constant increases and nickel and diming drove me to the limit. My paycheck doesn't keep up with this, so off it goes.

 

[Darrell S]

Protection plans are a waste of money IMO. You did good getting rid of that.

 

[ralfyguy]

So if my 722 ever goes belly up again, I just log in real quick and add it back and then call and bi$%# about the 722 died on me?

 

[KAB]

So if my 722 ever goes belly up again, I just log in real quick and add it back and then call and bi$%# about the 722 died on me?

Geeze! You have been around here long enough! Just go to DIRT. No bi$%# needed. Just ask if they will waive the shipping fee, if that's what is on your mind.

 

[ralfyguy]

Geeze! You have been around here long enough! Just go to DIRT. No bi$%# needed.

OMG! I signed up three days before you did in '05! LOL Yeah, so been a while! LOLOL

 

[ChadT41]

If you ever need to add it back on, the agent will ask if you want to add it before they ship something or roll a tech. It's not like other insurances where you have to have it before something goes wrong. Just have to have it before the visit is scheduled or replacement sent out. That all said, it's worth it just to pay the $15 S&H if you need a replacement. A tech, would be best to just subscribe to the plan. I agree with most the above statements... If not all.

 

[ralfyguy]

Well, I just wondered, because my owned 722 just gives out every two years or so.

 

[ChadT41]

I would leave it off until you need it, if you even need it.

 

[osu1991]

I got rid of the protection plan a couple of years ago. I just added it back once when my original 722 died last year and dropped it again after the 6 months or whatever it was that I needed to keep it. I'm gonna trim some more too. Just activated a tivo and moved all my OTA timers to it. When my dvr credits from my old 508's expire in a couple of months, the 722 will go too and I will just use my 211k w/ dvr software for sat and the tivo for OTA. Tivo tuner is more sensitive and locks onto KQCW easily whereas the 722 and 211k is flaky with the OTA signal and multipath.
There just isn't much on subscription tv worth watching anymore and what little there is gets repeated a few dozen times. I like/need/use FS1 for college football, but I am even questioning that some too. I would have dropped more programming, but had a problem, that DIRT of course solved, and as a 15+ yr customer they also offered me a programming credit, so I haven't dropped all the way to a lower package yet.

 

[ralfyguy]

I got rid of the protection plan a couple of years ago. I just added it back once when my original 722 died last year and dropped it again after the 6 months or whatever it was that I needed to keep it. I'm gonna trim some more too. Just activated a tivo and moved all my OTA timers to it. When my dvr credits from my old 508's expire in a couple of months, the 722 will go too and I will just use my 211k w/ dvr software for sat and the tivo for OTA. Tivo tuner is more sensitive and locks onto KQCW easily whereas the 722 and 211k is flaky with the OTA signal and multipath.
There just isn't much on subscription tv worth watching anymore and what little there is gets repeated a few dozen times. I like/need/use FS1 for college football, but I am even questioning that some too. I would have dropped more programming, but had a problem, that DIRT of course solved, and as a 15+ yr customer they also offered me a programming credit, so I haven't dropped all the way to a lower package yet.

Yes, the Dish OTA tuners are inferior, especially to my Samsung TV and the DTVPal. But even they cannot get KJRH or KOKI consistently. KTUL and KOTV have repeaters just outta town. KJRH should be ashamed with their hideous power output.
But that's beside the point. So if my owned 722 goes bad, I would only pay the shipping without the protection plan?
And what does a TIVO subscription cost, where and which one to get, and last but not least is it better than a DTVPal?

 

[osu1991]

Yes, the Dish OTA tuners are inferior, especially to my Samsung TV and the DTVPal. But even they cannot get KJRH or KOKI consistently. KTUL and KOTV have repeaters just outta town. KJRH should be ashamed with their hideous power output.
But that's beside the point. So if my owned 722 goes bad, I would only pay the shipping without the protection plan?
And what does a TIVO subscription cost, where and which one to get, and last but not least is it better than a DTVPal?

Had to edit this post, hit enter by accident

Sub for Tivo is not cheap. $14.99 a month, $150 a year or $399 for lifetime with promo code PLSR. The Roamio Basic OTA/Cable model is anywhere from $140 to $199 depending if you can get it on sale. The Roamio OTA only model is $50 plus the $14.99 monthly fee, no lifetime sub available on it.

I have 3 Paldvrs and as you probably know, we have really good psip data compared to other areas, but my mom lives at my lake house in Wagoner and I was getting tired of the little Pal glitches where it would show no info even though it had the guide data. I got a deal on the Tivo Roamio Basic and paid the lifetime and took it out to my mom to use. She is happy with it and I was impressed with how well it worked.

I got a second a Roamio refurbished from Woot this weekend for $99 and just hooked it up here in BA. I just activated it on the monthly plan for now. I will probably add lifetime to it and also take it back and forth to Las Vegas to use in our condo that I share with my dad and stepmom. The psip is terrible out there and the Pal is very flaky out there. My pals are in good shape. I just took 2 of them apart to clean and kind of wasted my time, as they were not really dirty, just a little dust around the fans. Not sure what I will do with them. Will hook one up in my office and the other in my bedroom at lake for now. I may add a Tivo Mini at some point, so I can have Whole home access through the Tivo.

 

[ChadT41]

Yes, the Dish OTA tuners are inferior, especially to my Samsung TV and the DTVPal. But even they cannot get KJRH or KOKI consistently. KTUL and KOTV have repeaters just outta town. KJRH should be ashamed with their hideous power output.
But that's beside the point. So if my owned 722 goes bad, I would only pay the shipping without the protection plan?
And what does a TIVO subscription cost, where and which one to get, and last but not least is it better than a DTVPal?

If it is an owned 722, and outside the 1 year warranty, then you would pay the $15S&H, and the $75-90 OOW fee.

 

[ralfyguy]

If it is an owned 722, and outside the 1 year warranty, then you would pay the $15S&H, and the $75-90 OOW fee.

That's actually cheaper then paying $192 in two years for protection program. But then it could die sooner than that.

 

[ChadT41]

Its also more expensive then paying $8 in 6 months, and removing it off.... but with the price increase on the PP, it actually would have been less than $180(just to play semantics).

 

[ralfyguy]

Its also more expensive then paying $8 in 6 months, and removing it off.... but with the price increase on the PP, it actually would have been less than $180(just to play semantics).

I think I'm gonna gamble and leave it off. I just got it replaced last July.

 

[ChadT41]

I think I'm gonna gamble and leave it off. I just got it replaced last July.

Best move! I haven't had it for over 2 years. I know the value in it for certain situations, but most SG members, it is not valuable at all.

 

[Claude Greiner]

I dumped all the movie channels when Dish changed their receiver fees several years ago where the DVR FEES where waived with the everything pack

 

[ChadT41]

I dumped all the movie channels when Dish changed their receiver fees several years ago where the DVR FEES where waived with the everything pack

Out of curiousity, does DTV or your cable provider waive that fee also? Or is this an industry standard?

 

[Claude Greiner]

Out of curiousity, does DTV or your cable provider waive that fee also? Or is this an industry standard?

Actually I never heard of a cable or satellite provider charging a DVR fee PER receiver.

It used to be a $7 charge per receiver, $5 fee for not hooking up the phone line and a $5 DVR fee per receiver.

You could eliminate the phone line fees by hooking the phone line up, and the $5 per receiver DVR FEE could be waived by subscribing to the everything pack.

With (6) 722's on my account the DVR Fee would have been $30 per month.

Since I had AT250 at the time, the everything pack was $30 or $35 more. So I eliminated the DVR fees and went with the everything pack which was a better value at the time.

Got each 722 on my account down to $7 each.

Then some idiot at Dish decided to simplify the fees and went to a $17 charge per 722 receiver. At that point removed all the movie channels which I didn't watch anyways.

Finally dumped Dish, went to Directv and am paying $6.50 per receiver and have all DVR's again.

 

[ChadT41]

Dish charges one DVR fee, of $7, the receiver fees are for the amount of tuners and capabilities. If you look at the 722 receivers like you mentioned, if you were to break it down, it is $8.50 per TV with the first being free. With DTV you get charged for each receiver at $6.50, including the first receiver, and most customers will have 6 or less rooms. Not sure how the DTV boxes work, if they require one at each room, but if that is the case it becomes 6.50*6 or 8.50*4, which is then going to be $39 compared to $34 with Dish. Again, I am not sure if DTV has duo receivers. You can get the 612 which is only $10, but covers one room, so if a customer needs say a 5 room setup, they are only paying $27 in receiver fees. With DTV, under the guise of one room per receiver, would be $32.50. And how much is the difference in the DVR fee? Isn't DTV something like $15 for DVR service fee? Dish is $7 if you do not have a hopper. Dtv is for what ever combination you have, Genie or otherwise?? Is this correct? I am willing to learn about the DTV equipment, I sincerely do not know about its physical capabilities.